In the wide pantheon of starter plates, not everything is as worthwhile as asteakhouse salad or tartare.
“Produce will always taste best when it’s local and seasonal.”
Other items whose flavor and integrity rely heavily on freshness are raw oysters and shrimp.
Shutterstock
And considering how dicey they can be in terms of causing illness, that is advice worth heeding.
The executive chef of theJW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn Resort & Spasuggests avoiding pre-shucked oysters.
“These oysters are often sitting in a cool environment for a while.
Shutterstock
Pre-shucked oysters can be bitter and gross.”
And to be specific, Saura Kline recommends keeping an eye out for oyster red flags.
Shrimp cocktail is another seafood appetizer that gets a hard pass from chefs.
Shutterstock
Instead, he suggests ordering shrimp appetizers that are more complicated and original.
“We offer an amazing shrimp appetizer served in a New Orleans-style creamy barbecue sauce.
The shrimp are always cooked to perfection and served with a side of crispy garlic crostini.”
But the chef never goes for a shrimp cocktail when dining out.
At the end of the day, it’s about the basics.
Or in this case, too basic.
“A traditional cocktail sauce is usually paired with it, which is just horseradish and ketchup.
Then there’s also the matter of authenticity.
Oscar Cabezas, executive chef of Bay Area-basedTeleferic Barcelona, advises to keep it authentic with your warm-up dish.
“I like to order appetizers that are centered around the cuisine of the restaurant.
As a Spanish chef, for instance, I would skip over croquetas at an American steakhouse.
